Increase Ecommerce Sales Using Minimal Effort [25 Proven Ways]

In 2023, global eCommerce sales hit a whopping $5.8 trillion, and experts predict 39% growth by 2027.

But here’s the question – are you achieving good sales?

If your online store isn’t making as much as you hoped, you’re not alone.

You might benefit from some proven strategies we’ll be covering in this article.

We’ll talk about:

• 3 key factors that influence eCommerce sales
• Effective design strategies
• Proven marketing strategies
• Tried and tested sales strategies
• Traits of a successful entrepreneur

It may sound like a lot of work, but don’t worry. These strategies won’t require much effort.

We eat, sleep, and breathe eCommerce. From building stores to optimizing them, we’ve done it all.

This article shares some of what we have learned.

We’ve arranged everything in an easy to understand sequence. If you implement them correctly, your eCommerce sales will soar!

3 Key Factors That Influence eCommerce Sales

When it comes to eCommerce, we’re talking about a bunch of things working together.

Whether your sales are booming or sluggish, it boils down to a 3 key factors:

1) Store traffic: More visitors usually mean more potential buyers, and hopefully more sales.

2) Conversion rate: This is the percentage of people who actually buy something after visiting your store.

3) Average lifetime value of a customer (ALV): This is about how much money you make from each customer over the time they keep buying from you.

If you’re aiming to increase eCommerce sales, working on any of these areas will soon start showing results!

Increase eCommerce Sales Using 25 Strategies That Work

No matter what kind of business you have, these proven strategies will give your eCommerce sales a boost.

We’ve organized them a little to make implementation a breeze.

Let’s kick things off with store optimization!

Optimize Your Store’s Design

Improve your website’s design for a great user experience.

1- Use an eCommerce Theme

We’re fans of WordPress partly because of its wide range of options. Seriously, there are so many gorgeous themes out there to choose from.

Our advice? Opt for a theme that’s built with eCommerce in mind.

When you’re selecting your WordPress theme, keep some essential traits in mind:

It should be:

• eCommerce ready
• Flexible
• Multipurpose
• Complete with a huge library of predesigned eCommerce templates
• Responsive so it works on any device
• Customizable so you can shape it however you want
• Compatible with eCommerce plugins
• Compatible with popular page builders
• Secure and fast
• Built with best coding standards
• A codeless experience
• Backed by top quality support

Finding an all-in-one WordPress theme might seem tough, but it’s actually not that hard.

Take Astra, for example. It’s got everything you need.

If you’re a WooCommerce fan, Astra naturally integrates with it (especially after the 3.9 update).

You get modern product pages and a wealth of features to give your customers an unparalleled shopping experience.

Here is what some of the satisfied customers have to say about Astra:

2- Make Your Store Responsive

In 2023, mobile eCommerce sales hit a massive $2.2 trillion worldwide. That’s a whopping 60% of all eCommerce sales!

This shift to mobile eCommerce hasn’t happened overnight.

We’ve been seeing it steadily rise since 2018 when 56% of shoppers were using mobile devices.

And it’s only going to keep growing.

That’s why it’s crucial to have a mobile-friendly eCommerce store.

If yours isn’t optimized for phones, you’re missing out on 60% of your potential market.

So, what’s the solution?

You could hire a pricey web developer to build you a responsive site.

Or, you could go the easier route and use a responsive WordPress theme.

We mentioned Astra earlier, it’s a fully responsive experience.

If you still want to customize things your way, responsive editing is part of Astra core.

3- Optimize Your Store for SEO

There are lots of search engines out there – Google, Bing, Yahoo, and many others.

Google is the biggest player and handles a whopping 40,000 search queries every second. That’s 3.5 billion searches per day!

Let’s say you’re selling ladies’ bags in New York through your online store.

Now, picture a local customer named Lisa. She’s on the hunt for a ladies’ bag for her mom’s birthday, so she types “ladies bags” into her favorite search engine.

If your website pops up on that search engine results page (SERP), Lisa will probably click on it and might even become your customer.

But if you’re nowhere to be found on the SERP, you can kiss that sale goodbye.

That’s where search engine optimization (SEO) comes into play.

How high up you show on the SERP and whether customers notice you depends on how seriously you take SEO for your online store.

A good place to start is by installing an SEO plugin.

Yoast and RankMath are top choices. If you want more options, check out this article for some great alternatives to Yoast.

SEO isn’t just about having a good plugin.

You’ll also need an SEO-friendly WordPress theme, along with a solid strategy.

Remember Astra from earlier?

It’s also a highly SEO-optimized WordPress theme!

The good news is that you can handle SEO on your own.

Once you’ve set up an SEO-friendly theme, this guide provides everything you need to put your strategy into action.

4- Optimize Product Pages

When you’re aiming to boost eCommerce sales, your product page is super important.

Let’s check out an example.

Deedo sells kids’ toys online, and they’ve got the WinFun Pull Back Car on sale at a 21% discount.

The store believes sales are not meeting expectations.

Let’s take a closer look at this product page. There are some key issues that need addressing.

Here are some unoptimized areas:

1. The URL says there are 6 pieces in the box, but that’s not mentioned anywhere on the page
2. The 21% discount tag is tiny, far from the product and easy to miss
3. There’s only one small product image, and no zoom feature
4. The product SKU is visible multiple times, which isn’t great
5. There’s no product description, shipping or payment info, and no reviews
6. The discounted price isn’t exactly 21% and increasing the quantity doesn’t adjust the price correctly
7. The heart icon shows the product is in your wishlist, even if you haven’t clicked it 😯

With all these issues, would you feel confident buying from this store?

Now, let’s look at a different example.

This product page from Best Buy tells a different story. It has:

• A clear product name
• Plenty of reviews to give you an idea of what others think
• Multiple images
• Bold, clear pricing
• Product variation and delivery information
• Detailed description
• The product isn’t automatically added to your wishlist 🙂

As a customer, what do you think of this page?

Best Buy provides all the information you need to see on a product page, making it much easier to decide.

That’s why a well-optimized product page is key to boosting eCommerce sales!

Here are some more SEO optimization tips:

• Work on a solid keyword strategy
• Optimize titles and descriptions based on your chosen keywords
• Use the correct structure for your product page
• Include FAQs to answer customer questions
• Use high-quality images and videos to showcase your products

All those tips are good for customers and search engines alike!

5- Improve Website Security

What would you do if you saw a security warning when trying to visit an eCommerce store?

Chances are, you’d go somewhere else.

You certainly wouldn’t trust a site like that with your personal or financial information!

Having a secure website is crucial for gaining customer trust.

Luckily, WordPress makes it easy to beef up security with a few simple steps:

1. Install an SSL certificate: SSL encrypts customer data between their browser and your store

2. Use security plugins: Prevent unauthorized access, deter hackers and more.

Reputable security plugins like Sucuri, Wordfence, or WebARX are well worth checking out

Need more options? Here is a great compilation of security plugins.

3. Regularly scan your website for malware: Make sure no bad actors are lurking. Good security plugins can handle this

This article will help you pick the right scanner for your website

4. Choose a reliable eCommerce plugin: Be careful when picking your eCommerce plugin. Plugins like SureCart or WooCommerce are solid choices

5. Use secure payment gateways: Top eCommerce plugins work with secure gateways like Stripe, PayPal, or Razorpay

6. Display security badges: Seeing that your site is secure makes customers feel safer. Use trust badges and seals on your product pages to build trust.

Once you’ve applied these security measures, let your customers know! You can use a message like this image to reassure them.

6- Improve Website Speed

Google says if your website takes 5 seconds to load, you could lose 90% of your visitors!

A high bounce rate like this means fewer conversions and less profit.

These stats are straight from a Google study, setting new standards for websites.

Improving your website speed might sound daunting, but you can do it yourself.

Speed depends on your web host, WordPress theme, plugins, and how your site is optimized.

Here are some tips to boost loading speed:

1. Choose the best web host for your business. Hostinger, GreenGeeks, and Cloudways are top picks

2. Go for a fast, lightweight, and responsive WordPress theme. As we discussed earlier, Astra is a fantastic choice

3. Use the best WordPress cache plugin to speed things up. WP Rocket and WP Fastest Cache are top performers

Want to dive deeper? Check out our detailed article on speeding up your eCommerce website.

7- Offer Multiple Payment Options

The payment methods you offer can make or break your eCommerce store’s success.

If you want to increase eCommerce sales, offering popular payment methods like Stripe, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Square, and others is key.

The more options you have, the better your chances of making a sale.

65% of Gen-Z and 80% of millennials said they’d ditch a checkout page without their preferred payment method.

Adding payment methods to your online store is simple with WordPress.

Use the free Stripe and PaPal checkout plugins if you are using WooCommerce.

With SureCart, everything is built-in, so no extra plugins are needed.

If you’re interested in adding Google Pay and Apple Pay to your eCommerce store, this is the video you need to watch.

8- Offer Split Payments

Split payments are a highly effective technique that eCommerce stores use to boost sales.

It is commonly known as Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL).

You can increase eCommerce sales by giving customers options such as delayed payments or pay in installments.

According to Statista, about half of US adults have used BNPL.

Depending on your product and target audience, when you offer BNPL on your website, you might see:

• Better checkout rates
• Increased purchasing power of customers
• Greater customer loyalty

Those are some ways to tweak your eCommerce site for better conversions. Next let’s talk about essential marketing and sales strategies.

Marketing Strategies

Master these time-tested marketing techniques to amplify your message.

9- Identify Product Demand With Organic Search

Every other strategy we’ve discussed in this article relies on selling a product that people actually want.

But how do you know what they want?

Ask yourself a few questions to get you started:

• Do you want to sell a digital or physical product?
• Are you creating the product or reselling existing items?
• Is it a commodity or something niche?
• What’s the demand like for the product or service you want to sell?

Use Google and other search engines to see what people are interested in buying within your specific niche.

Refine your choices until you have sufficient products to build a store within the market you want to serve.

If you’re looking to sell digital products, this article will help.

10- Build an Email List for Marketing Campaigns

A study by DMA.org.uk found that every $1 spent on email marketing brings in $42.

To kick off a successful email marketing strategy, you need to start by building an email list.

Here are a few ways to collect emails:

• Add a popup on your homepage
• Include an opt-in form in the navigation bar or footer
• Use signup buttons on social media
• Encourage users to sign up for your newsletter
• Face-to-face interactions can still be effective for gathering emails

The success of your email marketing campaign relies on various factors. One is the quality of your list.

Regardless of how you collect emails, make sure they belong to real people and are relevant to your business.

If you’re looking for proven methods to build your email list, check out this helpful tutorial.

11- Run SMS/WhatsApp Marketing Campaigns

Did you know the average American checks their phones around 144 times a day?

Spending on advertising through SMS is expected to hit $0.79 billion in 2024.

While emails are great for reaching your target audience, SMS and WhatsApp marketing take it a step further.

How? Because they can cut through the noise more effectively than other methods.

Similar to emails, you can retarget your customers through SMS/WhatsApp to send them flash deals or limited-time offers.

12- Recover Abandoned Carts

Did you know that 70% of visitors to eCommerce stores leave without buying anything?

That means out of every 10 people who reach your checkout page, 7 decide to bail without making a purchase.

That’s a lot of potential revenue down the drain!

The situation is even worse on mobile. The average abandonment rate on mobile devices is over 85.65%!

There are several reasons why users might leave your checkout page. Mostly, it’s because of friction during the checkout process.

You can turn things around and win back those lost customers with a few simple techniques.

• Don’t force users to register. Offer guest checkout
• Use a checkout progress indicator to make the process smoother
• Make sure the cart icon is prominently displayed on all pages

If you’re struggling with a high cart abandonment rate, this article offers over 20 effective techniques to boost eCommerce sales.

If you’re using WooCommerce on your eCommerce site, WooCommerce Cart Abandonment Recovery can help you fight cart abandonment.

Need more options? These plugins can be useful.

13- Target Customers Where They Are

Social media has become incredibly popular worldwide, with over half the global population using it.

We’re talking roughly 5 billion people engaging on social media.

For instance, Facebook leads the pack with 3 billion monthly active users, closely followed by YouTube with 2.49 billion users.

Other major platforms include WhatsApp (2 billion), Instagram (2 billion), WeChat (1.33 billion), TikTok (1 billion), and many more.

But should you target every social media platform?

Not necessarily.

Spreading your marketing efforts across all platforms can quickly drain your budget with minimal return.

Instead, focus on the platforms where your target audience spends most of their time.

For example, if you sell lifestyle products like skin care or health supplements, Instagram and TikTok might be the best places to start.

In addition to social media, don’t overlook the power of Google and Bing ads for more targeted responses.

As we mentioned earlier, Google processes a staggering 40,000 searches every second.

It can provide valuable insights into user demographics and preferences.

You can target your audience based on this data for higher returns.

14- Create Content to Promote Products

Including a blog section on your eCommerce website is incredibly productive. It allows you to engage with potential customers, build trust, and ultimately boost sales.

A key message you convey through your blog is that you’re an authority in what you sell.

For example, let’s consider our own experience. We sell the popular WordPress theme, Astra.

Alongside that, we maintain a busy blog covering various WordPress topics.

To engage our audience, we use text, videos, and creative graphics.

Here’s an example where we showcase our product within our articles.

Over time, this approach has helped us forge a strong bond with our audience, with many switching to Astra after discovering the strength of our theme.

Astra has been installed on over 2.6 million live websites, and the number keeps growing.

While we can’t solely credit our blog for this success, it’s undoubtedly a significant factor in our marketing efforts.

Based on our experience, we can confidently say that:

• Content is a powerful way to demonstrate expertise
• A blog acts as a magnet for search engines and drives more traffic to your site
• Keeping your blog updated encourages visitors to return
• Most importantly, a blog can influence purchasing decisions, spread the word about your brand, and contribute to its overall success

15- Encourage Customers to Post Reviews

How often do you check reviews on Amazon or AliExpress before purchasing a product?

For new customers, checking reviews is a common practice to make informed decisions about products. Especially if you haven’t used the store before.

This isn’t just limited to physical products; reviews are crucial in digital stores too.

Let’s consider an example: My Gadget Online is a WordPress based online store that sells gadgets and accessories.

Their product pages feature customer reviews and ratings prominently.

This is a great way to show new customers what others think about a product and the store overall.

Here are the main benefits of using reviews to boost sales:

• Reviews provide honest feedback from real buyers about quality, performance, and the overall experience. This helps others decide what to buy
• Shoppers trust fellow buyers more than brand marketing. It builds trust and credibility
• Reviews offer real-life examples of how products work. They help buyers see if they meet their needs. Negative reviews also help stores identify areas for improvement
• Reviews are beneficial for SEO as they add fresh content to product pages

16- Partner With Influencers

Globally, influencer marketing has grown rapidly, reaching $21.1 billion by the end of 2023.

This shows how much brands are investing in this type of marketing.

If you want to promote your product on Instagram, look for influencers with a decent following and a good reputation.

If you find it challenging to find the right influencer, don’t worry. Platforms like Modash have over 250 million influencers.

You just need to choose the one suitable for your brand.

These marketing strategies cover the essentials to give you a great start.

If you’re interested in learning more about them, here’s a detailed article with examples on eCommerce marketing strategies.

Sales Strategies

Use the proven sales tactics to maximize revenue and make more profits.

17- Optimize the Checkout Process

Slow-loading pages, unappealing product images, and poor copy can deter potential buyers.

It’s a tough crowd to please, which is why optimizing the customer journey is crucial.

Here are some recommendations to improve the checkout experience:

• Remove distractions: Sidebars, headers, and footers can distract during checkout. Keep the checkout focused on the transaction
• Offer multiple login options: If registration is necessary, provide options like Google or Facebook sign-in. Not everyone wants to create an account
• Allow guest purchases: Some customers prefer not to sign up. Give them the option to check out as a guest
• Simplify the form: Lengthy forms can confuse. Keep forms simple and straightforward for a smoother checkout experience
• Enhance the CTA: Make the call to action (CTA) button big and colorful. Ensure it’s easy to spot and click, especially on different screen sizes. Use a clear buy button to encourage action

If you’re using WooCommerce on your eCommerce store, this video is a fantastic tool to help you improve your checkout process.

Don’t stress about the cost of a checkout plugin. We’ve got you covered with two excellent free options for Stripe and PayPal.

18- Drive Customers to Buy More

You can increase eCommerce sales by convincing customers to buy more.

There are effective sales tactics to increase your average order value, meaning you earn more from each customer.

Here are some proven strategies:

Create scarcity:

There’s nothing like a ticking clock to motivate a customer. Make your deals time-sensitive to create urgency.

It’s what turns “I’ll check this out later” into “I need to grab this deal now!”

Upsell:

Upselling is where you drive customers to buy a pricier version of the product.

For instance, if someone is eyeing a smartphone with 64GB of storage, you might suggest upgrading to the 128GB model for a bit more money.

This video covers upselling and how to implement it in your store.

Cross-selling:

Suggest other products that go well with what customers are already buying.

For instance, if someone is buying a camera, you might recommend extras like a camera bag, tripod, or memory card to go along with it.

Highlight top sellers:

Show customers the top-selling items on your eCommerce site.

People tend to trust products that others like. By showing what’s hot, you help customers discover new stuff they might love.

19- Offer Discounts and Coupons

When you incentivize customers, they’re more likely to buy more.

Here’s how you can incentivize customers:

Coupons:

Coupons are an effective way to encourage repeat business and attract new customers.

For example, giving a 10% discount coupon for first-time shoppers can motivate them to make their initial purchase.

Giveaways:

Engage and excite customers with giveaways.

For instance, providing a free gift with purchase can encourage customers to buy more products to qualify for the giveaway item.

Loyalty programs:

Reward customers with exclusive perks for repeat sales through a loyalty program.

For instance, giving points for every dollar spent that can be redeemed for discounts.

Similarly, free products can motivate customers to keep coming back to your eCommerce store.

Seasonal promotions:

Take advantage of holidays, events, or changing seasons to boost sales.

For example, offering discounts or special promotions for Valentine’s Day, Black Friday, or Back to School season can motivate customers.

20- Track the Customer Journey

To ensure things go smoothly within your store, use a sales funnel to track each stage.

This helps you monitor important metrics like website visits, product views, cart abandonment rates, and conversion rates.

It might sound complicated, but it’s not.

Just pick the right sales funnel plugin and follow this simple tutorial to build your own sales funnel.

21- A/B Testing

A/B testing is important for making your sales funnels better and getting the most out of them.

You create one or more versions of your funnels and compare them against each other.

You can test different versions of web pages, product descriptions, prices, and call to action buttons to see which one works best.

By doing this, you can find the best page layouts for different types of customers which helps you get the most conversions.

For instance, some products might sell easier with images, while others need videos to explain features better.

22- Offer Fast Free Shipping

Shipping can make or break your store. All other things being equal, expensive or slow shipping is enough to put people off a purchase.

Offer free shipping if you can afford it. It’ll make customers happy and boost your sales. You can always add the shipping cost onto the product price.

If free shipping isn’t an option, set a minimum order amount for free shipping.

For example, a gift store could offer free shipping for orders over $50. This can also encourage customers to buy more so they qualify.

Work with trusted shipping companies for speedy delivery. You can also offer overnight shipping for a bit more money.

Most customers won’t mind paying extra for faster delivery.

23- Display Return Policy Clearly

Having a transparent returns policy is key to improving the customer experience and boosting sales.

When you clearly outline how returns work and the time frame involved, you ease worries and build trust.

For instance, imagine a jewelry store with a “30-day hassle-free returns” policy. This tells buyers they can easily return or exchange items if they’re not happy.

This clarity not only boosts first-time purchases but also encourages repeat business and positive reviews.

Customers feel more secure knowing what to expect.

Customer Services

Show customers you care and they will thank you with more revenue.

24- Provide Easy Communication

Make it easy for customers to reach out if they need assistance while making a purchase.

If investing in a cloud contact center is out of your budget, consider integrating a chatbot to handle common queries. For example, if you sell clothes, a chatbot can assist customers in finding the right size or style.

WhatsApp is a fast option for both local and international customers. The personal touch of having a human on the other end adds value.

The key is to be prompt in responding to queries and let customers know when you’re available.

While WhatsApp is great for live chatting, there are other apps that can serve the same purpose.

Don’t overlook the effectiveness of email and phone support—they’re still popular. Some customers prefer calling for specific inquiries.

25- Offer a Money Back Guarantee

A money-back guarantee means customers can get a refund if they’re not satisfied with their purchase.

For example, let’s say you run an online store that sells home fitness equipment.

If you offer a 30-day money-back guarantee, customers feel more secure buying from you.

They know they can try the product without worrying about losing their money, which encourages them to make a purchase.

3 Traits of Successful Entrepreneurs

We’ve covered nearly all the key strategies you can use to boost sales in your eCommerce business.

Now, let’s focus on how you can make the most of these strategies.

For eCommerce owners, having three essential qualities can greatly contribute to their success: passion, discipline, and the ability to prioritize action.

Let’s take a quick look at each of these aspects:

Passion

Passion drives creativity, innovation, and a deep understanding of your target audience.

Passion is infectious. The more you show, the more people see. Add passion to your store or your products and it should help increase sales.

Discipline

A store owner who diligently allocates time each day for essentials, drives more sales.

This might involve adhering to a strict content calendar for blog posts and social media updates, optimizing product listings for search engines, or analyzing data to identify areas for improvement.

Ability To Prioritize Action

You should be able to decide which task is important for your business.

For instance, if you prioritize prompt response to customer inquiries, resolve issues swiftly, and actively seek their feedback, you’re improving their shopping experience.

Similarly, you should know when is the right time to launch targeted email campaigns as this might have a long lasting impact on your sale.

Conclusion

In this article we covered some effective design, marketing, and sales strategies for stores.

We used our own experiences to provide tips and tricks we know work for eCommerce and that generate more sales.

We hope they are equally successful in your store. We hope they help you attract the same levels of customers, higher revenues and success!

To run an eCommerce store successfully, you need to stay updated on the latest techniques, tips, and tricks.

To help you achieve success, be sure to bookmark these articles for your next read:

• Ecommerce Statistics: 2024 Key Stats and Trends For Online Stores
• 24 Epic eCommerce Business Ideas for 2024 (Start Small, Win Big)
• WooCommerce vs BigCommerce – Which Is the Best eCommerce Platform?

What kind of online store do you have? Share your experiences in the comments below!